The President of Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry, Dr Abubakar Al- Mujtaba, has called on the Nigerian Government to create a private driven ranching system, and also deploy modern technology to dairy business.
He disclosed while giving the opening remarks at the 2021 World Milk Day celebration, and the release of the ACCI-PAC policy brief in Nigeria.
According to him, there is a need for all stakeholders in the diary business to do more, and optimize the opportunities inherent in the dairy sub-sector.
“The World Milk Day is an initiative of the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), designed to emphasize the importance of milk and dairy in our diet, as it aids the overall growth and development of the human body. We must remember that health is wealth.”
“As part of our advocacy mandate, we put together the webinar to support the effort of FAO, and escalate the importance of the dairy sub-sector, and the support the Nigeria government as well as the private sector can extend to it.”
Speaking further, he said the Abuja Chamber of Commerce and Industry, ACCI Policy Advocacy Centre (A-PAC), has produced a policy brief on the Nigeria dairy industry.
“The report will be circulated widely to all stakeholders with the hope that it will be implemented.
The major policy thrust of the ACCI-Policy brief on the dairy sub-sector are as follows:
continuation and expansion of the backward integration currently being supported by the Central Bank of Nigeria,
Private-sector-driven implementation of the National livestock transformation plan, and Creation of the private sector-driven ranching system”.
The Minister of Agriculture, Sabo Nanono, who was represented by Mrs Mercy Otite, said the ministry is not relenting in its efforts to ensure that the country has sufficient milk and dairy commodity.
” The Federal Ministry of Agriculture is partnering with different organisations to ensure that we have sufficient milk in the country. We are ensuring that we have a regular supply of milk in the country”.
Action Aid Nigeria Representative, Azubuike Nwokoye, emphasized the need for stakeholders in the dairy sector to discover models that will support efficient milk production in the country .
“Despite the fact that we have large number of cattles in the country, we are not utilizing the advantage in terms of dairy production. We need to look at issues surrounding milk production and come up with solutions that will support the dairy industry”.
He called on Government to support him in terms of access to water.
” One of the major challenges we are facing is in terms of water supply. We need water for the pasture to grow. It is also needed to provide a high level of hygiene and value chain”.
